Justin Ashley Continues To Improve Performance at Four-Wide
CHARLOTTE, NC (May 16, 2021) --- Justin Ashley and the Smart Sanitizer Top Fuel dragster powered by Strutmasters.com Top Fuel dragster team improved their on-track performance every time down the track at zMAX Dragway during the NGK NTK NHRA Four-Wide Nationals. The 2020 Rookie of the Year battled through tough conditions on Friday night and stepped up during both qualifying sessions on Saturday. In the second session Ashley, the winner of last season’s NHRA Summernationals, ran the quickest run of the session and picked three additional bonus qualifying points. This was Ashley’s second four-wide experience this season and for the young driver it was another learning opportunity.
“This four-wide race was much easier than the first one,” said Ashley. “I learned a lot from the first four-wide. We made four laps at that race and each run I learned a little something new. I spent a lot of time studying before the first four-wide but until you are actually out there physically doing it you really can’t get a full gauge on what actually happens up there. It is wild and a little wacky up there. I felt a lot more comfortable coming into this race. I think that is the key with me in that I want to take it upon myself to learn each and every race.”
Ashley's quick run to start qualifying on Saturday, 3.801 seconds at 324.51 mph, gave the team confidence to press in the final session to improve. In the final session they did step up with a 3.796 second run at 318.99 mph. The team moved into race day as the No 8 qualifier and a first round quad that included No. 1 qualifier Brittany Force, Clay Millican and Joe Morrison.
The Smart Sanitizer Top Fuel dragster powered by Strutmasters.com Top Fuel dragster tuned by veteran crew chief Mike Green took advantage of improved conditions to step up even more in the first round. Ashley’s dragster made an impressive run crossing the finish line 3.734 seconds after it launched off the starting. Unfortunately, Ashley, who has proven himself as one of the quickest leavers in the Top Fuel ranks, was .013 seconds too quick off the line. By the narrowest of margins his run was disqualified due to a red-light start.
“When you race long enough red lights are going to happen,” explained Ashley. ”It is unfortunate and it isn’t something you go into the weekend thinking about. When you look at the weekend as a whole everything could not have gone better aside from round one. It wasn’t a case of being too aggressive. It was me going up there trying to do my routine and I just happened to make a mistake. Another mistake would be not learning from it and move forward to the next race.”
Ashley reflected on the positives as his team packed up to head to Houston Raceway Park in five days for the next NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series national event. On Friday Ashley announced new co-primary sponsor Smart Sanitizer would be with the team alongside Strutmasters.com with Auto Shocker and KATO Fastening Systems for the rest of the season.
“We have an amazing new sponsor in Smart Sanitizer. Chip Lofton with Strutmasters.com brought all his guests to the races. We had a great weekend with Mike Green and the Davis Motorsports team giving us a great race car. We had a car capable of winning the race today and I didn’t do my job. We will rebound and be OK. I am very excited to get back in this race car especially after that first round. Any time you can get back in the car quickly it is fun. It will be a quick trip back to New York and then over to Houston. For the team getting that continuity of back-to-back races, staying on the road all that stuff adds up to make you a better team,” added Ashley.
The championship contending team will head to the fifth race of the season sitting No. 8 in the Top Fuel point standings.
Photo credit to Ron Lewis Photography for media use only
Qualifying Results
Q1: 6.962 sec, 85.17 mph; Qual. 10
Q2: 3.801 sec, 324.51 mph; Qual. 6
Q3: 3.796 sec, 318.99 mph; Qual. 8
Bonus Points: +3 (Quickest of Q2)
Race Results
First Round
Driver Qual R/T ET MPH
Justin Ashley 8 -.013 3.734 321.73
Brittany Force 1 .080 3.719 333.49 (W)
Clay Millican 9 .219 3.755 321.81 (W)
Joe Morrison 16 .038 8,353 92.06
Camping World Drag Racing Series Top Ten - Top Fuel
1. Steve Torrence, 408
2. Antron Brown, 332
3. Brittany Force, 274
4. Shawn Langdon, 248
5. Josh Hart, 245
6. Billy Torrence, 215
7. Doug Kalitta, 197
8. Justin Ashley, 194
9. Leah Pruett, 176
10. Clay Millican, 164
About Justin Ashley Racing
Justin Ashley Racing in partnership with Davis Motorsports fields the Strutmasters.com Top Fuel dragster in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. During his Top Fuel rookie season in 2020 Justin won the NHRA Summernationals, finished in the Top Ten and was recognized as the 2020 NHRA Rookie of the Year. Prior to his professional debut Ashley has three wins in Top Alcohol Dragster on the Lucas Oil Series. He is the son of multi-time NHRA national event winner Mike Ashley. In 2017, he was named to the Drag Illustrated magazine’s 30 under 30 list, highlighting some of racing’s most promising young individuals on and off the racetrack. When he’s not racing, Ashley serves as President of Ashley Developers, a real estate investment organization dedicated to the rehabilitation of distressed properties. To learn more about Justin Ashley Racing, visit JustinAshley.com.
Elon Werner
VP of Sports Publicity
Tony Fay Public Relations
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Twitter: @TonyFayPR | @ElonWer
